Han Solo is the key to Star Wars. He is very much an Ayn Rand type of character. Without him, the series would have just been another Flash Gordon rip off.
As Han Solo is lowered into the Carbonite machine, Princess Leia says, "I love you." Then Harrison Ford famously utters that most Han Solo of Han Solo retorts: "I know." Most people don't know that was an improvised line.
Something only a self made man like Harrison Ford would come up with. Ford was a carpenter just hanging around filmmakers in the 70s. He got the job as Solo because he was a productive person--not another leech trying to get a film part as a second-hander through the audition process. That came out in his early films and stayed with him until about age 50. After that, the Hollywood guilt looks like it started to sink in, altrusim and all that kind of stuff.
However, I have some bad news that I heard about tonight (7/7). Star Wars 7 is on hold as Harrison Ford's broken leg heals.
“Do or do not... there is no try.”